Teaching international economic law in the 21st century

Abstract

This book contribution explains why international economic law (IEL) is increasingly taught from diverse, national and regional perspectives and value premises (I). IEL courses should focus on the common regulatory objectives, instruments and legal methodology challenges of IEL (II) and on how the ‘embedded liberalism’ underlying UN and WTO law promotes non-discriminatory ‘regulatory competition’ and diversity of national and regional IEL systems (III). The post-1945 ‘embedded liberalism compromise’ needs to be adjusted to the global environmental, health and sustainable development challenges and to the need for stronger protection of transnational rule-of-law in world trade, investment and environmental law and governance. Without maintaining the compulsory WTO dispute settlement system and investment and human rights adjudication, the citizen-oriented ‘sustainable development goals’ cannot realize their human rights objectives (IV).